Name: Ian Prince
Occupation: Bloodline Warlock
Magic: Level 7 (undergoing an explosive leap)
Skills: [Enlightenment of Wisdom (this skill cannot be upgraded)]
[Potions Mastery (Level 2) 23/200]
[Sectumsempra (Level 1): 5/100]
[Fear Curse (Level 1): 18/100]
[Corpse Control Curse (Level 1): 2/100]
[Runes Mastery (Level 1): 14/100]
[Killing Curse (Level 1) 7/100]
[Lumos (Level 2): 3/400]
The information displayed on the panel was as simple and straightforward as ever.
Aside from the string of spells Ian had learned either by teaching himself or with someone else's guidance, two things on the panel had changed. The first, and most noticeable, was his magic level.
"My magic level just jumped up three whole levels!"
Ian had experienced the power of legend firsthand.
The Golden Apple.
Mentioned in both ancient Greek mythology and certain fairy tales, this wondrous fruit actually had the incredible power to directly raise a wizard's magic level!
Level seven magic!
A leap of three entire levels!
And that still wasn't the limit of what the Golden Apple could grant!
"Undergoing an explosive leap..."
However he looked at it, this status on the system panel meant the Golden Apple's magic-boosting effect could still raise Ian's level a little further.
Just how much further, he couldn't say yet. Perhaps one level, perhaps two. Either way, it was an almost unimaginable boon.
After all,
most young wizards only gained a few levels of magic as they grew older after their first magical outburst. Aside from the Elder Wand—dismissed by most as a legend, and known to only a handful of people who knew who possessed it—the wizarding world had scarcely heard of anything that could increase a wizard's magic.
Even the powerful and incredible Philosopher's Stone couldn't increase its user's magic. A wizard's innate level of magic could practically determine their future.
In a world like this,
Ian had never expected the so-called Golden Apple to possess the strange power to change one's "predestined fate."
"No wonder it's a treasure capable of serving as the main ingredient in a potion that can reverse life and death!"
He could understand why the Golden Apples had gone extinct.
Even if Professor Mara hadn't cut down the last Golden Apple Tree, such a treasure would surely have vanished in later generations. Well, perhaps it had gone extinct, or perhaps something else had happened.
"Pandero really gave me an extraordinary gift. Next time I return to Limbo, I should prepare a gift he might like, too."
Ian was sincerely grateful to his friend from Limbo. He picked up the wand from beside his bed and could feel his magic far more clearly than before.
"Fire..."
Ian was about to test just how much power his magic now held when he suddenly remembered he was in a wooden cabin.
Even the bed he'd slept in was made of wood.
Did wizards in the wizarding world know nothing about fireproof varnish?
"That was close!" Ever since swallowing the Golden Apple, Ian's thoughts had been extraordinarily clear. That was probably the ability granted by [Enlightenment of Wisdom].
It was the only skill Ian had ever seen that couldn't be upgraded. It was another gift from the Golden Apple, and its effect was to keep Ian in a constant state of reason.
That was right.
It didn't grant Ian supernatural intelligence.
It simply helped him make better use of the wisdom he already had, keeping negative emotions from influencing him in most situations and significantly improving his learning efficiency.
Perhaps it could be considered a low-grade version of the [Diadem of Ravenclaw]. As a passive ability bestowed by the Golden Apple, this skill was just as astonishing.
"Lumos!"
Ian switched to his most commonly used spell.
The next moment,
as a torrent of magic surged into the wand, a light sprang to life at its tip. Its boundary spread soundlessly outward, and in an instant, the entire quiet cabin was lit up.
Brilliant light.
It was far more magnificent than the light that had previously illuminated just one room.
"No, I need to try a spell with some real power!"
The immense improvement set Ian's blood racing. In the middle of the night, wearing nothing but his shorts, he climbed out of bed, slipped on his homemade flip-flops, and pattered outside.
Night had fallen.
Beneath the stars, all was silent.
Ian aimed his wand at the open ground.
"Incendio!"
It was the only legal attack spell Ian currently knew.
As he used the incantation to link the pathways of the magic, a burst of sound rang out, and blazing flames poured from the tip of his wand like a rushing tide.
"Not enough!"
Ian felt he could manage it with ease, so he increased the flow of magic through the spell's pathways. The flames danced, raging beneath the night sky like a surging dragon.
Firelight fell across Ian's face. His expression was excited and fervent.
"The spell's pathways limit the amount of magic that can flow through them. But if I alter the structure a little and add a few more channels for the magic to run through..."
After his explosive increase in magic, Ian could clearly sense that the pathways of [Incendio] had an upper limit on how much magic they could output.
Caught up in his excitement, Ian carefully began trying to add more channels to the pathways of [Incendio], aided by his clear state of mind.
"I can't let the spell's framework change at all. Otherwise, the magic will just collapse." After several attempts, all that came from the tip of his wand were a few spurts of fire, as if it were vomiting.
He seemed to understand.
"Once the channel is formed, the spell's framework is bound to be damaged. This seems like an unsolvable problem..." Ian tried again, but failed once more.
The fire did "vomit" for a little longer this time. It might have made a decent firework, but that clearly wasn't the result Ian wanted.
"Perhaps..."
Ian gripped his wand, his mind spinning furiously.
"I shouldn't be trying to add channels to the spell's initial pathways."
"Perhaps the moment just before Incendio's pathways are complete is the most stable opportunity—and it only lasts an instant!"
It all clicked!
Ian raised his wand again.
"Incendio!"
With the help of the incantation, the spell's pathways took shape.
And just as the spell was about to form—
"Now!"
Ian seized the possibility he had glimpsed.
"Hiss!"
The flames, which had been no more than a long serpent, gained expanded channels for the magic. In an instant, they blazed as if doused in gasoline, their surging light welling from the tip of the Elder Wood wand.
"Rumble!"
It was practically an explosion!
Blazing light illuminated the entire field, sweeping out in every direction. Scalding waves of heat seemed ready to swallow everything around them!
"Oh no!"
Ian hadn't expected the spell to be so terrifyingly powerful.
He panicked.
The fiery waves surged and roared. The fence, the trees, and the little cabin where Snape had put Ian all seemed on the verge of turning to ash in the blaze.
"I'm done for!"
Ian racked his little brain, but the only idea he came up with was to summon the corpses and have them hurry to fetch water and put out the fire.
"Magnificently brilliant, and a feast for the eyes. This truly is..." an elderly voice exclaimed in wonder. An old man in white robes walked up the cobblestone path.
"Masterful creativity."
He raised the ancient wand in his hand and gave it a gentle wave.
Then,
it was as if someone had forcefully pressed the pause button on everything happening there.
The heat, the flames, the burning ground and the house.
Everything.
Stopped dead.
Thank you for yesterday's tips. I'm working hard on the next chapter!